Monoculture

This Black Ratsnake was crossing the road to sleepy creek WMA. I thought for a whole half a second that I had run the poor creature over. The catch in all was quite dramatic. I flung myself down a cliff to persue the beast. He was hot; and speedy as all hell. I almost died getting this DOR Black Ratsnake. (It's in alcohol by the way.) On Rt. 9 just before the bridge over the Shannendoah River. It's a very mature snake and in damn good condition so I figured I'd let it become a voucher. That makes for 5 Black Ratsnake vouchers. Oy... too many.

Also tonight, we had some cricket frog full choruses, a spotty onesie and twosie of green frogs calling, a smattering of grey tree frogs calling, 3 fowler's toads calling.

I drove from my house in Martinsburg to Sleepy Creek, to Glengary, to Gerrardstown, to Inwood, to Middleway, got lost in Clarke County, then on to Charlestown, took a trip up to Shannondale, followed the Shannendoah to Harpers Ferry, then Shepherdstown, and back home.

And all I produced from that circuit was two black ratsnakes and some calling frogs and toads. Rediculous.

I really think I should focus my road work to Back Creek, Sleepy Creek, and Morgan county. Most of the rest of the night was comparatively unproductive once I left those regions. It's a shame that the densities of herps in Jefferson and most of Berkeley county frankly don't justify road herping.

Ugh.

In other news, dreams of Corn Snakes drive me on.

The other question is.. why do I find 90% of the time Black Ratsnakes DOR... and almost nothing else. It's rediculous... and it's weird. Do we have a monoculture of Black Ratsnakes around here?

The other outstanding issue is corn snakes...

Only found in this state a handful of times! And many years ago to boot. That's foolish. Look at this distribution of corn snakes from Towson. Clearly they should be able to infiltrate at leat from the north. The Virginia distributions are also similar. They are here. They are hiding. And they need to be found.

Kingsnakes continued...

In my readings the eastern kingsnake has been found in WV ONLY in the valley that the North fork of the Potomac River flows through... now does that make any sense either...

No....

where are they?

Eastern Kingsnake

It's awfully close to Jefferson county.... so why aren't they here!

http://wwwnew.towson.edu/herpetology/reptiles/Lampropeltis%20getula.htm

Snakes found in motgomery county...

Circa their website.

Snakes Found in Montgomery County
Common Name
Zoological Name (Genus/Species)
Copperhead
Agkistrodon contortrix
Worm Snake
Carphophis amoenus
Northern Scarlet Snake
Cemophora coccinea copei
Racer
Coluber constrictor
Northern Ringneck Snake
Diadophis punctatus edwardsii
Corn Snake
Elaphe guttata
Black Rat Snake
Elaphe obsoleta obsoleta
Eastern Hognose Snake
Heterodon platyrhinos
Mole Kingsnake
Lampropeltis calligaster rhombomaculata
Eastern Kingsnake
Lampropeltis getula getula
Eastern Milk Snake
Lampropeltis triangulum
Northern Water Snake
Nerodia sipedon
Rough Green Snake
Opheodrys aestivus
Queen Snake
Regina septemvittata
Brown Snake
Storeria dekayi
Eastern Ribbon Snake
Thamnophis sauritus
Common Garter Snake
Thamnophis sirtalis
Eastern Smooth Earth Snake
Virginia valeriae

Thoughts on rare snakes...

http://www.dnr.state.md.us/wildlife/snakeinfo.asp
This is maryland's understanding of their snake distribution. Divided into common, uncommon, rare, endangered, and historical.
The eastern kingsnake is common...

Common
Black Rat Snake (Elaphe obsoleta obsoleta)
Eastern Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis)
Eastern Hognose Snake (Heterodon platyrhinos)
Eastern Kingsnake (Lampropeltis getula getula)
Eastern Milk Snake (Lampropeltis triangulum triangulum)
Eastern Ribbon Snake (Thamnophis sauritus sauritus)
Eastern Worm Snake (Carphophis amoenus amoenus)
Northern Black Racer (Coluber constrictor constrictor)
Northern Brown Snake (Storeria dekayi dekayi)
Northern Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix mokasen)
Northern Ringneck Snake (Diadophis punctatus edwardsi)
Northern Water Snake (Nerodia sipedon sipedon)
Rough Green Snake (Opheodrys aestivus)
Smooth Green Snake (Opheodrys vernalis vernalis)
Southern Ringneck Snake (Diadophis punctatus punctatus)

Uncommon
Coastal Plain Milk Snake (Lampropeltis triangulum elapsoides X triangulum)
Corn Snake (Elaphe guttata guttata)
Mole Kingsnake (Lampropeltis calligaster rhombomaculata)
Northern Red Belly Snake (Storeria occipitomaculata occipitomaculata)
Queen Snake (Regina septemvittata)
Smooth Earth Snake (Virginia valeriae valeriae)
Southern Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix)
Timber Rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus horridus)

Rare
Northern Scarlet Snake (cemophora coccinea copei)
Redbelly Water Snake (Nerodia erythrogaster erythrogaster)

Endangered
Mountain Earth Snake (Virginia valeriae pulchra)
Rainbow Snake (Farancia erytrogramma erytrogramma)

Historical
Northern Pine Snake (Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus)

Smooth Earth Snake (Virginia valeriae)

http://www.uga.edu/srelherp/snakes/virval.htm

I found my first Smooth Earth Snake (Virginia valeriae.) That's first as in ever. Which is pretty damn exciting. And I have my own pictures too, but I left them in the lab at school. (Blast!) I'll post them whenever I get a chance.

I found the snake while actually road herping (eagle eye?)up to the Sleepy Creek Wildlife Management Area just before the border with Berkeley and Morgan counties in West Virginia. Does anyone know where that is? Well either way... my copy of Peterson's doesn't have the snakes' distribution in this area.

I have to wonder if anyone over at Marshall University http://www.marshall.edu/herp/ has seen any around her in their recent grad student excursions...

It's a lifelister kids.

Now if anyone has seen a queen snake...